The topics introduced in this story are definitely timely and important. The author does a good job of covering them in a rather satirical and humorous way. This was a quick read, but there are a lot of characters to keep track of,
My rating - 3.5 stars

In Troy, Georgia, old high school rivals Lula Dean and Beverly Underwood are at it again. Now on the school board, Bev is fighting as Lula launches a boycott of "inappropriate" books, starting her own Little Lending Library with carefully curated, “wholesome” titles. Unbeknownst to Lula, Bev's daughter swaps those tame reads for the very books Lula wants banned. As the townsfolk devour these rebellious titles, minds open, lives change, and chaos spreads. When the truth comes out, it's a final showdown between Lula and Beverly that will leave Troy forever changed.
As someone born and raised in the South, though perhaps not the most traditional part of it, this book resonated deeply with my own experiences. In her note, Miller seemed to capture my thoughts exactly—her past mirrored mine in so many ways. In Lula Dean, Miller masterfully tackles heavy topics with both satire and subtlety. Each chapter focuses on a different character, allowing me to immerse myself in their individual stories without feeling overwhelmed.
Living in a state where lawmakers are aggressively working to ban books, it saddens me to think that today’s children may never have access to the same impactful stories that shaped my own childhood.
As the daughter of an educator, I was fortunate to have unrestricted access to information and was encouraged to explore. "Look it up in the encyclopedia" was a household mantra (Google didn’t exist, y’all). Some of my fondest memories are getting lost in the school library stacks waiting for my mom to finish work. I still treasure my copy of Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson and can vividly recall the fierce sense of injustice and empathy it stirred in me. In recent decades, a new wave of heroes has emerged—women who played crucial roles in winning wars and people of all races whose heroic contributions were long overlooked. Their names deserve to be remembered and celebrated.
As Johnny Cash once said, "Take lessons from life and leave the world a better place."
Thank you to NetGalley & William Morrow for the ARC. 3.5 stars

I will absolutely read anything this amazing woman writes. Empowering, well-tied together, deep characters…I highly recommend!!!

I misread this title thinking it was going to be a simple easy read, a bit of fluff to while away a few hours. It was a whole lot more. Lots of “isms” are explored including the Nazis, the woke, the far right, the gays, the trans, race, semitics, small town politics, families who support each other and hang together and those that shatter and split apart. The humor thankfully helped moved this piece beyond dark and menacing. Lots of characters, lots of opinions, lots of clever tricks, twists and turns with an interesting ending.

The issue of book censorship and banning - what is considered appropriate, is so timely as to be unbelievable that we are still struggling with the concept of who can read what. This book has a lot to say, all of it relevant and important and the delivery was near perfect. Many thanks to William Morrow/HarperCollins for a copy

This book was just not for me. First, it felt very choppy, I almost thought it was a bunch a short stories. I found the whole book to be quite goofy & off-putting.

Attention craving Karen like Lula Dean wants to control what the people in her small town are reading. After leading a successful book banning campaign which wipes out every classic she deems offensive, she opens a little library on her front yard. Unbeknownst to her, the banned books get placed inside of the book covers. This is such an important book for these times about how the right book finding its way into the right pair of hands can change the world.

Kirsten Miller’s Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books is a delightful romp through the quirky world of small-town Georgia.

Pros:
Satirical Brilliance: Miller masterfully tackles book banning with humor, turning a serious issue into a side-splitting read.
Character Transformation: Borrowers from Lula Dean’s library experience unexpected personal growth, proving the power of literature.

Cons:
Predictability: The plot occasionally follows familiar beats.

Overall, this witty novel earns its 4 stars for its cleverness, heart, and the reminder that books can change lives - even in a wooden hutch by the roadside.

I had no idea what I was getting into truly when I quickly read the preview of this story. It was so much than I anticipated and I thoroughly enjoy it. Wilma had me laughing out loud in the beginning, and then things sobered up as the story progressed. It was a well weaved story of a true time in many people’s lives and I’m glad Kristen told it.

I wish I would not have waited to read this. I LOVE LOVE LOVE this story! As a huge advocate of choice, this book is perfect for me!

The story of a small town and a busybody. Lula wants to protect the people. She is fighting to get books banned in her community. She sets up a Free Little Library in her front yard to provide good wholesome books. That is until someone decides to swap the books but leave the covers. Just follow the story. It is heartfelt and needed in our divisive country right now!

A super fun, somewhat satirical look at the south and the current divisiveness in our nation politically. What started out as a mostly silly and at time ridiculous story built to a very moving story.

Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books by Kirsten Miller was as surprising as it was hilarious, and it's release over the summer prior to an election year is an excellently timed satirical response to the satirical reality that some communities and towns across the south have become. The story is just close enough to real, to make you scratch your head because it's easy to believe that there are Lula Dean's out there, all over the country, stewing and cooking up nonsense. Quick, hilarious read, and a great follow up to Miller's The Change, which was another great over-the-top, but relatable ridiculous romp through real-life shenannigans.

I loved every single character in this book, and while I typically don't like stories with a whole bunch of characters to keep track of, Miller created people that I recognized and loved/hated (or just hated) so easily that I didn't have to check myself on who was who.

This book will certainly offend the folks on my feed who believe they should pick my reading material (and that of my children). It will offend people who are comfortable and confident in their open hatred of their LGTBQIA+ neighbors. But really, they were going to be offended anyway, so go read it. It's fantastic!

I really like how Miller's books are so timely. This story, on its surface, is about a group of people in a small town who are hell bent on banning "inappropriate" books from the town library. Deeper than that though, the book dives into so many important topics we are dealing with today, from racism to anti-Semitism, homophobia to gender roles, religious discrimination and more.

There is a very large cast of characters in the book, and each character has an interaction with Lula Dean's LFL. Many of the chapters are broken out almost into their own short stories. I really liked the way that each character 'magically' found the book they didn't know they needed. The characters' different stories all came together in the end.

Overall, I thought this was a good book with an important message. There were some scenes that felt a little over the top, and there were SO many characters that I had trouble keeping track of everyone and their backstory. It wasn't on the same level as The Change for me, but it was a good book.

Overall, I would recommend checking this one out.

Everyone has a story and we can learn and grow in empathy by being open to one another's stories as well as the stories available to us through books.

I took a while to take this book off my To Be Read pile and I am happy I read it. The story of the city of Troy, GA, and its residents as they try to deal with change in our world and in their town. The story revolves around Lula Dean's efforts to ban certain books in the school and town library. When Lula puts up a Little Library of suitable books, one character changes out the "approved" books and inserts banned books with the slipcovers of the approved books. As each resident borrows another book we get a glimpse into their lives and what the banned book has to teach them and it all comes together with some other storylines in the town.

The book is being billed as a satire and while it is true that some characters are a bit stereotypical and some storylines strain credulity, I preferred to take it as a lightening up what could have been an otherwise heavy book.

I read this book sitting on the beach; it was an easy page-turner. I wish book banners would read this book as it offers a different perspective.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy of Lula Dean's Little Library of Banned Books in exchange for an honest review. This book is available now.

TL;DR: I read LULA DEAN’S LITTLE LIBRARY OF BANNED BOOKS last fall and it rocked my damn world. It is hands down the most fun reading experience I’ve had in the last year, and when I made a decision to start my own monthly book club, there was no doubt in my mind that LULA would be one of the first book club picks.⁣
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The latest from Kirsten Miller, the author of the 2022 feminist rage satire/suspense novel THE CHANGE (A Jordy’s Book Club must-read), LULA DEAN is a southern-fried satire that takes down this country’s obsession with culture wars in an objective, thoughtful, and did I mention laugh-oud-loud, pump your first, hell yeah kinda way? This is THE book that will have you saying “mmmmmhmmmm”, “I know that’s right”, “amen”, “get her, Jade”, “makes sense to me!!” and “finally, someone writing the thoughts in my head into existence”. This book is not a blue state book. It’s not a red state book. It’s a common sense killer of a novel that I just know you’re going to finish reading and want to pass on to all of your friends. It’s that good. And it’s that much fun. No other book this summer will have you simultaneously laughing your butt off at a whipped-cream spraying penis cake while you double check to make sure you’re registered to vote this fall.

Does a book really have the power to change someone's life? Can it really redirect a person's moral compass? The local busybody certainly thinks so which is why she has launched a book banning campaign! She's doing it for the sake of the children obviously. Unfortunately, for Lula Dean, not everyone in town agrees with her and a hilarious countercampaign ensues. Soon the township is in complete chaos and the locals are forced to address the skeletons that have been so unceremoniously ripped from out of the closet. This charming novel explores the themes of book banning, prejudice, sexism, and flagrant racism with a levity that makes these themes accessible to any audience (well . . . not neo-Nazis, but everyone else). The author highlights the endearing aspects that characterize the South while leveling serious social critiques that remain unaddressed. The novel is also well paced with each chapter telling the story of a singular character that feeds into the larger plot. The characters were so well developed that I couldn't help falling in love with them and I certainly couldn't out this book down! I loved this book and I have recommended it to everyone!

Much like Kirsten Miller's previous book, The Change, Lula Dean is meant for a specific audience. Luckily for me, I am very much that audience.

Lula Dean tackles the current issue of book banning, and in a delightful manner, uses specific books to showcase how diverse literature can enrich people's minds and help them through their life. I love the nods to various books that have been on banned lists (Speak, The Diary of Anne Frank, etc), and how they affect the readers. By virtue of the stories referenced, the entire town is changed. Each chapter is related to a specific character reading a specific book. I really loved the idea of hijacking a little library by replacing all of the awful books with related books.

This is a soapy, cozy book - Lula Dean the character is the WORST, but everyone involved learns some lessons, and the town is better off for it. This was a charming read. My only real complaint is that there were a few too many characters, and it got a bit confusing keeping track of who was connected to whom. But if you happen to be the target audience (liberal-leaning, voracious reader, open-minded), I think you will quite enjoy this one.

This book is fabulous and so timely. It focuses on a small town on the south (be sure to read the author’s note) that begins banning books to “protect the innocent children.” And due to a prank, instead of books help bring people together. There are a few hard topics discussed so research trigger warnings.

The power that books have to educate, share different perspectives and create compassion is amazing. This is why I love to read. This would make a great book for a book club!

Thank you to NetGalley and William Morrow for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

“When you have everything, the only luxury left is taking things away from others.”

Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books reminded me so much of the movie, Pleasantville. This tiny town of Troy, Georgia starts out in black and white. Women wear belted dresses and stockings and live in the kitchen. But the teenagers are curious and rebellious, and with each discovered banned book, pops of color emerge.

Kirsten Miller surprises me every time, because the covers of her books are often sweet and cute. They give little indication of the punch within. They are often witty, numerous, and packed with perspectives on human rights issues that would sway even the most ignorant.

The Change was one of my favorite books from 2022, and I can safely say that Lula Dean’s Little Library of Banned Books is one of my favorites of 2024. It showcases how important representation is. Not only to the person who is pleading in their mind to find someone like them, someone who makes them feel normal and seen, but also to the people who love them.

Reading is escapism, and there is forced empathy in that. We are regularly put into someone else’s shoes, and it’s exactly what we need as a society. We need empathy and understanding, and banning books keeps us ignorant and separated. I encourage you to read this book and other banned books.

It was a sad and happy story. Made me laugh and it made me cry. Gave a wonderful perspective of social issues happening right in front of us today. Gave the book 4 stars.

I will read anything Kirsten Miller writes. Lula Dean is a great follow-up to The Change - but I wonder if anything could stand up to the remarkable novel that that one was. Lula Dean is a joy. Look forward to more from this author.